Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Bari (Fides Service) - “It is precisely in the Most Holy Eucharist, in the Mass we are celebrating at this moment and in every Mass all over the world that the mystery of God, three in one, is made present for us, is given to us. In the Eucharist in fact the Lord Jesus Christ, our brother and eternal Son of the Father renders present through the power of the Holy Spirit, his sacrifice, his death on the cross with which he reconciled us with God the Father, and reopened for us the door to friendship with God”, Cardinal Camillo Ruini, Inviato Special Enovy of Pope Benedict XVI said in his homily during the solemn Mass on Trinity Sunday 22 May on the occasion of the 24th National Eucharistic Congress in Bari.
“In the Eucharist Jesus Christ nourishes us with his Body and his Blood - the Cardinal said - allowing us to share in the eternal fullness of divine life, allowing us to sit at table with Him at the Supper for which we rejoice for ever with the knowledge and love of God, communion of life with the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, with the Blessed Virgin Mary and all the Saints, and with all those whom we have loved on this earth and whom Jesus saved with his Cross”. The Cardinal, President of the Italian Bishops’ Conference then said “the Eucharist is truly the heart of the Church, the nourishment of the life of every individual member” and therefore we too are called “to make our life a gift to the Lord and to our brothers and sisters to build a world in which we can all be happy together.”
On Saturday 21 May Cardinal Ruini presided the opening of Congress which was in the form a Liturgy of the Word/Concert of Sacred Music. The music was the “Misa Tango” (Tango Mass) written and directed by Argentinean composer Luis Bacalov. Archbishop Francesco Cacucci of Bari-Bitonto, welcomed the Papal Envoy, the Cardinals and bishops, local authorities and Congress participants with these words: “Bari, custodian of the relics of Saint Nicola, is - as our late beloved Pope John Paul II said here in this town, “a natural bridge to the East verso”. The Congress we are celebrating assumes an ecumenical tone because the Eucharist is a sign and channel of unity and reconciliation. May the Lord help us during the coming days to exchange our gifts in order to respond more effectively to the queries which society today poses to the Christian community in a changing world.”
Cardinal Ruini said the week of the Congress “will be a special opportunity for each of us to reflect on the great gift of the Eucharist and how the week Celebration which marks the Church’s pilgrimage makes Sunday the day of the Lord, the Church and mankind”.
The execution of the Kyrie and the Gloria opened the first part of the event, followed by a Scripture reading, a passage from Revelation on the heavenly liturgy. The Creed and Sanctus led to the second reading taken from the Acts of the 3rd century Martyrs of Abitene put to death for the faith and because they said “we cannot live without Sunday!” The execution of the Agnus Dei marked the third moment which concluded with the symbolic gesture of bread rolls (donated by local bakers) distributed among those present as a sign of brotherhood and hospitality. (S.L.) (Agenzia Fides 23/5/2005 - Righe 39; Parole 572)
